The Legal Landscape of NGOs in Libya: Current Challenges and Potential Solutions. Recent developments affecting the legal framework governing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Libya have generated significant confusion and uncertainty. This article will explore the current, unsatisfactory state of the law and discuss some potential ways to address these existing challenges.
Legal Background
Law No. 19 of 2001 on the Reorganization of NGOs (“Law No. 19”), and its executive regulation, Decree No. 73 of 2002 (“Decree No. 73”), have traditionally served as the primary guidelines for NGOs in Libya. Under Law No. 19, the General People’s Congress (now known as the Parliament) had the authority to oversee the registration of foreign NGOs, while domestic NGOs were registered by the Council of Ministers on the national level and the relevant City Council on the local level. This framework was significantly modified following the 2011 revolution.
In particular, Council of Ministers’ Decree No. 1160 of 2018 established the Civil Society Commission (the “Commission”) to assume comprehensive responsibility for registering both foreign and domestic NGOs in Libya. Although subordinate to the Council of Ministers, the Commission was granted the power to issue decrees to regulate the NGO registration process. One of the crucial decrees issued by the Commission was Decree No. 5 of 2023 on the Establishment of Regulations for the Registration and Publication of Domestic and Foreign NGOs (“Commission Decree No. 5”), which outlined the legal requirements for the registration of foreign NGOs in Libya.
